Governing Board acts to terminate principal

The Governing Board voted Thursday night to adopt a statement of charges against Sequoya Elementary School Principal Maureen Booth, which has the effect of terminating her employment with the District after a 30-day period if Ms. Booth does not appeal the charges. Ms. Booth has been on administrative leave with pay since Sept. 10, pending the outcome of an investigation that focused on the administration and management of her office.

On Thursday, Superintendent Barbara F. Erwin submitted the statement of charges to the Governing Board. The statement of charges identifies several violations of laws and policies regarding:

• Alteration of student test scores.
   
• Improper acceptance of gifts.
   
• Failure to appropriately discipline an employee who made inappropriate overtures to a fifth grade student.
   
• Allowing the use of school facilities by an outside entity without requiring rental payments.
   
• Falsifying student enrollment counts.

In addition altered test scores, “the District’s investigation revealed other matters related to Ms. Booth’s administration and management of Sequoya that demonstrated her poor judgment, lack of credibility and violation of District policies,” reads the statement of charges.

“The investigation also revealed a disturbing pattern of behavior by Ms. Booth in connection with these matters and other matters in which her judgment was questioned. That behavior included blaming others for her mistakes and intimidating employees who disagreed with her decisions,” reads the statement of charges.

“This is a district that has tried steadfastly and diligently to correct past mistakes, including the free use of public property by outside entities. It is somewhat discouraging that this type of activity continues, despite all the re-training and public notice,” Dr. Erwin said.

“Whenever there are allegations of employee misconduct, the district has an obligation to investigate and enforce its policies and state law. We have said that repeatedly, and we have acted on it consistently,” Dr. Erwin said.

“Illegal and improper activities by employees cannot be tolerated,” noted Kim Cumby, executive director of Human Resource Services. “The actions uncovered in this investigation are contrary to state law, and, as such, put the district and its future funding at risk.”

“It is truly regrettable that the district is once again handling such issues. However, given the allegations, it is prudent management to conduct a thorough, fair, independent, and legally sufficient investigation; and then to take appropriate action,” Mrs. Cumby said.

“We believe our parents, our employees, and others who have placed their faith in public education have an expectation that a school district will do everything it can to uphold the law and set an example for our students,” Mrs. Cumby said.
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